Tier 2 and beyond cities, including Agra and Indore, have recorded the highest demand for beauty and grooming products on Flipkart. Overall in 2021, the beauty and personal grooming categories on Flipkart witnessed a Y-o-Y growth of 65 per cent, with the sale of men’s grooming products growing by over 46 per cent, and that of skin-and-hair care by 70 per cent.
With salons remaining inoperational for most of 2020 and 2021, and with the building customer apprehension to step out, ‘salon at home’ as a trend began to witness an uptick as people tried to replicate the experience at home. This included hair colour, facials, face masks and waxing, among others.
Products like hair serums, face serums, sheet masks, shampoos, conditioners and the like, saw a steep jump in purchases. Of this, the highest growth was clocked by verticals such as facial kits. As consumption patterns tend to alter depending on seasonality and trends, the festive months also saw increased traction in hair and skin care, specifically in the premium segment.
With the masses hopping onto the ‘conscious consumerism’ bandwagon, the last couple of years witnessed customers and brands shifting their focus towards sustainability. As per a survey conducted in the Flipkart customer base, 83 per cent of customers preferred buying eco-friendly products, and 63 per cent said beauty and personal care is the category where they consider buying eco-friendly products.
Brands including Nivea, Vaseline, Pears, Dove, Tresemme, L’Oréal Paris, Biotique, Lotus Herbals, Garnier, Mamaearth, Bombay Shaving Company, WOW Skin Science, Beardo, Ustraa, Joy, MCaffeine, Muuchstac, Good Vibes and VLCC were most popular among customers. Tier 2+ cities, in particular, accounted for increased combo and gift kit purchases. Differentiated portfolio brands such as Mamaearth, WOW Skin Science and Beardo also saw increased traction in these regions.
Some of the most searched keywords included ‘facial steamers’, ‘gua sha’, ‘anti ageing’, ‘eye care’, ‘teeth whitening’, ‘bath salts’, ‘men’s grooming’, ‘hair volumizer’, among others. Going forward, Flipkart aims to continue to enhance its selection in these categories as well as focus on emerging trends such as Korean, Japanese and organic beauty.